Waimate burn-off haze irks visitors and residents
Concerns have been raised around burn offs in rural areas after Waimate was shrouded in smoke earlier this week.
Huge clouds of smoke over the town concerned Dunedin residents Ronald Robert and Nancy Phipps yesterday as the couple headed home. Their concerns have been echoed by Waimate resident Ann Dennison, who lives at the historic Te Kiteroa Lodge, which stands on an elevated 1.6 hectare site and overlooking the town. She described the smoke as a ‘‘very full on, thick haze’’.
‘‘Tuesday was very bad, it was too smokey to sit outside.’’
The couple said they contacted Environment Canterbury (ECan) and Waimate mayor Craig Rowley after investigating the matter.
‘‘There were huge clouds of thick smoke we saw driving south from Timaru on Tuesday, thinking it was a scrub fire, we investigated and drove towards Waimate off State Highway 1, and a few metal roads later saw the cause,’’ Robert said.
‘‘Too bad about global warming.’’
Robert said Waimate residents would have been breathing in PM10. ‘‘The law needs to be changed to stop this old-fashioned practice,’’ he said.
Dennison said it was a seasonal issue and she has contacted ECan in the past with her concerns. ‘‘Every year it’s the same thing, it is a concern and I’ve mentioned it to authorities,’’ she said.
Rowley confirmed he had been contacted by Robert. ‘‘The big issue is we are surrounded by cropping farms in Waimate and there probably needs to be a bit better planning by farmers,’’ Rowley said.
‘‘It’s about this time of year when burn offs are a regular occurrence.’’
In June 2018, multiple complaints led the Waimate District Council to review policies around burn offs in rural areas.
Council’s regulatory and compliance group manager Sue Kelly suggested a permit system would make things simpler for ECan in terms of knowing where fires are and who is responsible.